Henna help, please!

[Emiline]

Hi, I'm going to henna my hair today after colouring it traditionally for several years. I'm a natural redhead but at 41 my hair colour has faded and has some whites, so I like to brighten it up and colour those pesky whites. I haven't coloured it since mid-March when Covid hit here so I thought it would be a nice time to make a switch to henna. Also, my hair is thin and I understand Henna will make it healthier and thicker. Here's hoping! I'm using Nightblooming, 1/2 Rusalki and 1/2 Fire-Gensai. It's in the double boiler prepping right now!

My questions are:

I know I need to wait at least three days before it washing... no problem, but in the meantime can I:

-swim in the ocean? Will the salt be harmful? If it's okay should I be sure to rinse with tap water after?

-use dry shampoo? If so, is spray or foam preferred? What about using dry shampoo on hennaed hair in general? I used to only use Moroccan Oil Dark, and loved it sooo much. During Covid I've been less able to go to the beauty store, so tried drugstore dry shampoo like Batiste both foam and spray. These are not as bad as I expected but not as nice as the Moroccan Oil dark. Will using Moroccan Oil dark make my hair more brown and less red over time? I'm about a level 6 so I was always told to go with the dark. I don't like the frosty effect of using regular Batiste too many days in a row.
-Is there a better option than dry shampoo for in between washing days (I like to wash only 1-2 times a week).
-I was thinking of colouring my brows at the same time but do you think with this mix they'll go too red? They are naturally very fair. I usually colour them with a professional brow colour called Augenblick in Chestnut (a redish brown), but thought the henna might have the nice benefit of colouring the skin too making my thin brows appear a bit thicker and more nicely shaped. I watched a couple of videos on how to do this and it seems pretty simple.

Thanks to anyone with answers to any of these!

Wish me luck!

[Obsidian]

There is no real reason to wait three days before washing. I always shampooed mine immediately after rinsing.
I did use a gentler sulfate free shampoo but I don't think it was necessary.
Once henna bonds to your hair, its there to stay. A little shampoo isn't going to strip it.

I did henna my transparent eyebrows. They looked ridiculously orange for a few days but eventually settled down after oxidizing.
I found that I preferred traditional dye though, the henna was just a bit too much.

[_fred_]

Seconding what Obsidian said, although I use a sulfate shampoo as part of the henna rinsing experience rather than suflate free. I've had no problem whatsoever with that.

I generally wash the majority of the mud out with a sink full of water of a comfortable warm temp, and then I take a shower to get the rest out, including shampooing and conditioning my hair. It makes no difference to the colour of my hair, but it does help my scalp to return to a normal colour faster!

Swimming in the ocean and dry shampoo should both be fine. With ocean swimming, the main thing is to make sure your hair has enough moisture - but that's the same whether you've hennaed or not.

No idea about Moroccan Oil Dark; I'd recommend doing a strand test to make sure it won't have any unwanted side effects.

I've also hennaed my very pale eyebrows, and they came out very bright, but soon faded to a really nice auburn. It was fun, and I'm planning on doing it again.

I hope you enjoy your henna experience!

[Jane99]

Henna faded on my hair the first time or two I did it, before it really “stuck” but Obsidian is right, shampoo really won’t affect it. But since henna is drying and will absorb any excess oil from your hair, it might not bother you to wait a day or two to wash. I really like the way my hair feels right after hennaing so I don’t like to wash it right away but I have oily scalp that doesn’t like to wait forever for me to wash it, plus the henna makes my scalp orangeish until I do wash it and I won’t go to work with an orange scalp. Haven’t swam in the ocean since last summer so I have no experience with ocean water and henna. I think you can use whatever dry or wet shampoo you want. Some people get protein sensitive, but other than that, no major routine changes needed.

[Emiline]

Thank you all. That's very helpful. I did henna my brows but I found them too light. I don't think I left it on long enough and didn't have any more henna prepared so just coloured them as usual. Maybe I'll try again next time. The mud is still sitting on my hair. It looks so brown right now and I'm having trouble with the little wispy hairs around my face drying out because they keep escaping from my shower cap/ towel combo, and I wonder if that will affect their colour. Even if so they are barely there. I'm washing it out in about an hour and a half.. nervous but excited! I'll try to remember to do an update once it's oxidized and I really know the true result. Thank you so much for all your useful tips!

[Jane99]

Enjoy! And I would love to see the results

[Fethenwen]

Yes, it is perhaps better to be a bit cautious coloring brows with henna if they are very light in color, because they may go a bit too bright red. I usually color my brows with henna while hennaying my hair, but I have brown brows, so the effect is not as dramatic.

Looking forward to seeing the results as well

[hennalonghair]

Never swim in chlorinated pools or the ocean after colouring your hair even if it a natural product. It can ruin the colour.

https://botoxcapilar.org/en/swimming...coloring-hair/

[shelomit]

When hennaing our hair at my grandparents' house, we would often jump in the pond to rinse off the paste. I don't know what the effect of saltwater would be, but TBH, not much will budge henna.